Proton Pump Inhibitors and Kidney Stones

For the study, Italian researchers analyzed dated on 187,330 individuals without a prior history of kidney stones who were included in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study (HPFS) and Nurses’ Health Study (NHS) I and II. Patients using proton pump inhibitors were followed for 12 years, while those who used H2 blockers like Zantac were followed for 26. Over that time, a total of 3,245 patients experienced kidney stones. After adjusting for age, race and other factors, the study authors determined that proton pump inhibitors were associated with a 12% higher risk of developing a kidney stone, while use of H2 blockers increased risk by 13%.

A further analysis involving a subgroup of subjects also suggested that proton pump inhibitors were associated with lower urinary excretion of calcium, oxalate, citrate, and magnesium, all of which are components of kidney stones.

“Use of PPIs and H2 blockers is associated with a small increase in risk of incident kidney stones,” the study’s lead author said. “Further studies are needed to confirm our findings and to investigate whether the excess risk is related to a particular type of kidney stones such as those made of calcium oxalate.”

Other Kidney Problems Tied to Proton Pump Inhibitors

This is not the first time research has suggested that proton pump inhibitors might be associated with serious kidney complications. For example, a study published in JAMA Internal Medicine this past January suggested that the medications might increase the risk of chronic kidney disease by as much as 50%. The findings were based on an analysis of medical records from more than 10,000 patients treated in community-based settings, as well as 248,000 people treated in a Pennsylvania hospital system.

In April, additional research published in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology suggested that long-term users of proton pump inhibitors may be 96% more likely to experience kidney failure and 28% more likely to develop chronic kidney disease compared to those taking H2 blockers. The findings also suggested that the risk increases the longer patients used the medications. In reaching their conclusions, the authors of the analyzed data from Veteran Affair national databases to compare 73,321 proton pump inhibitor uses to a group of 20,270 H2-blocker patients.